Philips Fidelio X2 Defects on Amazon

[Hammy]

  headifier by name HAMMY got 3 different fidelio x2s with different sound quality & he differentiated them from  what was written on headband and on box ,but it was not clear what he said, if he could clarify to identify them, would appreciate.

 
I don't follow this or any X2 threads anymore, so if someone wants to discuss my experience with the X2 please drop me a PM.  Also, please try not to misquote me and do re-read my posts.
 
I had three X2s at the same time: one glued WOOX and two glued Gibsons.  The WOOX and one Gibson sounded as I thought they should and the second Gibson was very muffled in comparison.  I am repeating myself as I have stated this several times before.
 
It is my opinion that, due to cost cutting methods brought in by Philips, the quality of the Gibson models dropped and it is therefore MORE LIKELY that you'll receive a bad pair in comparison to a WOOX branded pair.  My own experience shows that there are indeed good sounding Gibson pairs, but if I were a potential buyer I would source a used WOOX pair and hope for the best.
 
Last post in here, good luck guys! 

 

[pantheon]

I've ordered a new pair from amazon.it....what can i do to  test if they are defective? i'm coming from the superlux evo

 

[starling2k]

If they have truly corrected the problem, the ear pads were designed to be replaceable.  The original X2s did not have any glue on the attachment posts. You should be able to check that and see if pads are removable and no glue.   I do not know however if part of the fix included eliminating the glue so that might not be a great way to test. The problem reported was the sound was muffled.  The surefire way to test is to put the headphones on and listen to something you are thoroughly familiar and if you hear the best sound you have ever heard with headphones, including sounds and nuances you have never noticed before, then they are "fixed."  The original X2s were absolutely some of the most exceptional headphones made.  If yours don't sound as good or much better than your Superlux EVO, then the problem is not corrected. The Superlux headphones were no slouch - great sound for the price.
 
Please post back and let us know if the X2s are indeed restored to the original great Philips headphones that were made by Woox for Philips.
 
By the way, I just recently saw a video and read about the Philips SHP9500 headphones.  I have a pair of those as well and they sound excellent.  The information I saw indicated that they are being discontinued and could now be bought for $59 on eBay from NewEgg. They are very much less heavy than the X2 and you hardly notice having them on - they also have less clamping force than my X2s. The SHP9500 headphones originally listed for $159.99.
 
I hope your new Philips X2 headphones turn out to be the same as original great ones.....

 

[chronics]

I bought my pair of X2 from Amazon UK (Amazeal) early March, first thing to say is these are very comfortable headphones.I used link (http://www.audiocheck.net/soundtests_headphones.php) provided on the other X2 thread to test for channel imbalances and ended up running all the tests. The X2 was behind in all the tests compared to my M100 and UE6000 with the exception of the Binaural test, this had me wandering if I have a defective pair but its difficult to say as both of my other headphones are closed.
 
Once I start listening to songs the X2 excels, it sounds very neutral and has good separation of instruments, I AB'd a number of songs including Bobby Womack Close to you and the vocals weren't overwhelmed by the instruments, at times I felt this with the M100. To me these phones sound pretty good, very neutral, and sometimes lacking presence and bass compared to M100 ,although not compared to the UE6000, Vocals are excellent. 
 
My concern is I bought these in March and they came with glued on pads, the Philips statement which was in Jan said they would no longer be using the glued on pads, the sound is good but not what I expected especially compared to the M100 or even the UE6000, as this is my first pair of open headphones and the M100 is far from neutral, as well as I suspect my Denon DA300 doesnt pair well with these leaves me wandering whether to a return to Amazon just to compare them, although I expect the new pair would be the same.

 

[pantheon]

  If they have truly corrected the problem, the ear pads were designed to be replaceable.  The original X2s did not have any glue on the attachment posts. You should be able to check that and see if pads are removable and no glue.   I do not know however if part of the fix included eliminating the glue so that might not be a great way to test. The problem reported was the sound was muffled.  The surefire way to test is to put the headphones on and listen to something you are thoroughly familiar and if you hear the best sound you have ever heard with headphones, including sounds and nuances you have never noticed before, then they are "fixed."  The original X2s were absolutely some of the most exceptional headphones made.  If yours don't sound as good or much better than your Superlux EVO, then the problem is not corrected. The Superlux headphones were no slouch - great sound for the price.
 
Please post back and let us know if the X2s are indeed restored to the original great Philips headphones that were made by Woox for Philips.
 
By the way, I just recently saw a video and read about the Philips SHP9500 headphones.  I have a pair of those as well and they sound excellent.  The information I saw indicated that they are being discontinued and could now be bought for $59 on eBay from NewEgg. They are very much less heavy than the X2 and you hardly notice having them on - they also have less clamping force than my X2s. The SHP9500 headphones originally listed for $159.99.
 
I hope your new Philips X2 headphones turn out to be the same as original great ones.....

 
Thank you,they are arrived,wow the difference with the superlux is very noticeable

more separation,widht of soundstage and middle more prominent ,i love that sound!!
IMHO the sound isn't muffled,the balance test seems to be ok,there aren'tthe leather is even inside the band and the name of woox isn't here. the only defect is the metal  ring in one part,
The pad maybe are glued i don't want to remove it without a reason...
should i return for the metal ring? they sound sooo good :/ i'm undecided,paid 226 euros,i will upload photos later

 

[starling2k]

Hello Pantheon
 
I'm glad your X2s came with the great sound.  I personally think the X2s are the best set of headphones I have.  I hate to hear that you have a problem with the metal ring.  I also agree with you that I would not take the ear pads off just to see if they are glued - sometimes it's best just to leave good enough alone.  One possible idea for you is that Amazon does have a thirty (30) day return policy.  You could keep the ones you have and order a 2nd pair. If the 2nd pair arrives and sound just as good as the ones you have now and there is no band or other problem, then you could send back the 1st ones for a refund.  Not sure if this is really good advice but something to think about.  Good luck...

 

[cdbee]

edit: before someone reads this post: some posts later in this thread i clarify that i am KEEPING the x2.  x2 sounds different, not worse than x1 AT ALL. in short: i fooled my self.
 
I recieved my X2 couple of days ago. I have a direct comparison with my X1.
My old X1 sounds clearer, more detailed, wider soundstage.
The new X2 has a much stronger bass, but seems to lack details (or they can't be heard as clearly as in X1). Also soundstage does not seem to really exist, everything just seems close.
Also in the X2, the details seemed mixed together sometimes and can not be differentiated as nicely as in the X1.
=> The X2 just sound massively different.
However, I can see why people keep it if they never heard the X1 or listen to the "wrong" music, since it is NOT obviously faulty (like totally, obviously crap sound). However, as I said, I am very disappointed.
BTW: The music I listen most too (at the moment) has unbelievable amount of detail (psytrance, which is no ordinary "boom-boom-techno stuff").
So in short, I believe my headphones are faulty. Cuz in the the early X2 reviews (like http://headphoneaddict.com/fidelio-x1-vs-x2-review/) I read stuff that is quite the opposite from what I am experiencing.
This is quite a sad matter actually, because I'd love to have a enhanced X1, like the early reviews had me to believe. Damn Philips, what have you done... I believe X3 headphones will not be out for a while.
I mean I can continue to listen to the X2 for more (I listed to it for 3 hours until now), but I really doubt a pair of headphones can change that massively from just listening, even if they are brand new. Damn.
 
EDIT: although, I would like someone to confirm: the X2 should sound BETTER with a crispier bass, right? I'm really thinking of buying an early one off ebay now. Which date of initial purchase should I target for at the latest if I buy from ebay?
EDIT2: hardly believable that later X2 sound worse than earlier X2's. What could they have changed other than earpad stuff? The basic headphones (internal workings, etc) are the same I guess? Maybe they just ******d up the production process too.
EDIT3: before I send them back I am going to let them play for some nights and then listen again. Would suprise me if anything changed but I will give them that chance.

 

[MartzX]

I too have what I think to be a defective pair of X2's. The box says WOOX on the back but they are glued earpads with the paint rubbing off along the mounting points of the headband and the cups. It says there is a 1 year warranty. The Amazon return policy expired months ago and I have been using them and they seemingly sound great but my frame of reference might be thrown off now because some who have claimed they don't sound anywhere near as good as they should.

This is particularly worrisome for me as some were saying WOOX branded ones were the genuine article and it was the Gibson ones that were defective but my guess is Gibson is either using the WOOX name or WOOX was also using the low QC process as well.

I don't know if I should give Philips a call or not and see if I can get a replacement. I am mainly worried that I will get another defective pair that won't sound good and I have already been through three Amazon returns and just got tired of it and kept the most recent pair.

 

[starstern]

.....I had three X2s at the same time: one glued WOOX and two glued Gibsons.  The WOOX and one Gibson sounded as I thought they should and the second Gibson was very muffled in comparison....
 
if happen to get such which is muffled ,am i tough luck " or it can be adjusted some way ?? my puirchase on amazon

 

[pantheon]

The new X2 has a much stronger bass, but seems to lack details (or they can't be heard as clearly as in X1). Also soundstage does not seem to really exist, everything just seems close.
Also in the X2, the details seemed mixed together sometimes and can not be differentiated as nicely as in the X1.
=> The X2 just sound massively different.
 

 
In which songs for example?
I have a new pair of gibson's X2 but i love them,i could return them but the sound is very great,the soundstage is bigger than my superlux evo and the middle and the highs are much more detailed...

 

[cdbee]

   
In which songs for example?
I have a new pair of gibson's X2 but i love them,i could return them but the sound is very great,the soundstage is bigger than my superlux evo and the middle and the highs are much more detailed...

For example:
 
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UZB7ApwMn6w 
The latter parts, around 6 minutes seemed not at all differentiated (just a sound mess, all mixed together).
 
However I don't know what quality this youtube version has, I did not listen to this version, but a high quality one.
 
I already packaged my X2 again ready for sending it back just too lazy to have done it yet.
 
EDIT:
 
or take the following 2 tracks:
 
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FR0vrdcVj9I&nohtml5=False
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6uDwzVZ3JJU&nohtml5=False
 
The X1 emphasises everything perfectly in those tracks. With X2 the bass is emphasised more and I feel somehow a bit of detail is lost (because of that?)

 

[fluidz]

The entire issue with most may very well be with the earpads, their positioning and compression.  I have a pair of the Fidelio X2/27 with Gibson on the box but Woox on the headband and they are from Amazon Warehouse. I have tried rubbing the earpads on white paper and there is "no" bleeding on mine.  I took the earpads off and they do have glue on the posts but go back on easily and stay on even without the glue.  You have to be careful removing the pads or you'll rip the the cloth driver cover if it is glued to the post - the trick is to grab or pinch the cloth at the post if it is stuck and peel it off.  I then reversed the earpad from the way they were originally attached.  There is an alignment marker arrow on the inside of earpad -- I simply put them on just the opposite way.  I think the sound with the earpads this way is  improved on mine.  It probably has something to do with the distance of driver to the eardrum and perhaps a better seal around the ear.  I think mine sound absolutely excellent this way.  I have a number of headphones including the Sennheiser 600, 598, 580 - AKG K553, AKG K7XX and the Fidelio X2 sounds as good or better than any of those.

You can also try a little trick - take you fingers (thumb, index and middle fingers) and with the headphones on, apply pressure to the outside of the earcup housing - pressing them tighter to your head.  You'll definitely hear a different sound - bass is much tighter and high sounds like cymbals become crystal clear - I did this with the earpads on the way they originally came and this is the reason I decided to reverse the original alignment.  This may also explain why some have stated that after burning in the headphones for a couple of weeks, sound improved drastically.  Perhaps it was just a matter or the memory foam cushions becoming more compressed and the driver closer to the eardrum. 

Anyway, I think these are awesome headphones and plan to hang on to mine.  I hope this is helpful.

Good point.

Also if you pull the headphone pads slightly away from the side of your face, just enough to let air pressure out inside the cup, the sound signature of the headphones changes.

I can imagine there must be a fair few of us who wear specs, some with thicker frames than others. If the headphone cushion sits on the frame of the glasses (with a thick frame) away from the face, the seal is broken, changing the sound signature slightly.

 

[starstern]

   
In which songs for example?
I have a new pair of gibson's X2 but i love them,i could return them but the sound is very great,the soundstage is bigger than my superlux evo and the middle and the highs are much more detailed...

analytical never goes the same line as joy and warm ,would all agree that as far just being entertained into the music the x2 the one to go with ?

 

[c64]

  For example:
 
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UZB7ApwMn6w 
The latter parts, around 6 minutes seemed not at all differentiated (just a sound mess, all mixed together).
 
However I don't know what quality this youtube version has, I did not listen to this version, but a high quality one.
 
I already packaged my X2 again ready for sending it back just too lazy to have done it yet.
 
EDIT:
 
or take the following 2 tracks:
 
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FR0vrdcVj9I&nohtml5=False
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6uDwzVZ3JJU&nohtml5=False
 
The X1 emphasises everything perfectly in those tracks. With X2 the bass is emphasised more and I feel somehow a bit of detail is lost (because of that?)

Because the x1 used parts that actually cost a lot the x2 is a cheap chinese copy

 

[pantheon]

  For example:
 
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UZB7ApwMn6w 
The latter parts, around 6 minutes seemed not at all differentiated (just a sound mess, all mixed together).
 
However I don't know what quality this youtube version has, I did not listen to this version, but a high quality one.
 
I already packaged my X2 again ready for sending it back just too lazy to have done it yet.
 
EDIT:
 
or take the following 2 tracks:
 
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FR0vrdcVj9I&nohtml5=False
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6uDwzVZ3JJU&nohtml5=False
 
The X1 emphasises everything perfectly in those tracks. With X2 the bass is emphasised more and I feel somehow a bit of detail is lost (because of that?)

 
Thanks,to my ear these  songs  sounds good, expecially the first one,i didn't know infected mushrooms i like this group!
However I notice the sound at minute 6 mixed together but i can distinguish the different parts of he songs, surely i can't tell there is meter and meter from an instrument and the other,but i think no headphones can.